About the Counseling Program
The Concordia High School Counseling Program is based on the Missouri K–12 Comprehensive School Counseling Program, a statewide framework developed by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). Our comprehensive program provides age-appropriate support to all students, helping them achieve academic success, explore career opportunities, build positive relationships, and develop the skills needed for lifelong success.
School counselors collaborate with students, families, teachers, administrators, and community partners to create a safe, welcoming, and supportive learning environment. Through direct and indirect services, we strive to ensure every student has the opportunity to learn, grow, and reach their full potential.
How the Program Supports Students
The Missouri Comprehensive School Counseling Program is organized around four program components:
- School Counseling Curriculum: The school counseling curriculum provides all students with age-appropriate lessons that help them develop the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in school and in life. Classroom lessons focus on academic success, career exploration, and personal and social development and are aligned with the Missouri K–12 School Counseling Learning Standards.
- Individual Student Planning: Helps students set goals, make informed decisions, and prepare for their future. School counselors work with students to develop academic and career plans, explore postsecondary options, monitor progress toward graduation, and navigate important transitions throughout their educational journey.
- Responsive Services: Sometimes students experience challenges that affect their ability to learn or be successful at school. Responsive services provide timely support when students need it most. These services may include individual or small-group counseling, crisis response, consultation with families and staff, and referrals to community resources when appropriate.
- System Support: Behind the scenes, school counselors work closely with teachers, administrators, families, and community partners to ensure the counseling program effectively meets the needs of all students. This includes planning and evaluating the program, collaborating with school staff, participating in professional learning, connecting families with resources, and continually improving services that support student success.
When fully implemented, the program allows school counselors to focus on meeting the needs of every student and strengthening the overall school community by enhancing:
- Student mental health and interpersonal/intrapersonal development
- Student academic achievement
- Career development
- A positive and safe learning environment
- Collaboration with parents/guardians, teachers, administrators, and the community
- Accountability through a comprehensive evaluation process
To learn more about Missouri's Comprehensive School Counseling Program, please visit the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) School Counseling webpage or view the Missouri Comprehensive School Counseling Program Manual.
Confidentiality and FERPA
What is confidentiality?
Confidentiality is the ethical duty of school counselors to protect a student’s private communications shared in counseling within ethical limitations.
What you say to Ms. Buzzanga stays with Ms. Buzzanga unless:
- Someone is hurting you
- You want to hurt someone
- You want to hurt yourself
- You give permission to share with another adult
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
FERPA is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records and provides parents with specific rights regarding access to those records.
When a student turns 18 years old or enrolls in a postsecondary institution, these rights transfer from the parent to the student, who is then considered an eligible student under FERPA.
